Cricket: ICC suspends Sri Lanka over political interference

The International Cricket Council (ICC) suspended Sri Lanka's membership with immediate effect on Friday.

The indefinite ban was down to political meddling, the ICC said, and comes a day after Sri Lanka's parliament asked the board to resign over accusations of corruption.

Why the Sri Lanka Cricket board has been suspended

Cricket's world governing body said it had found that Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) was "in serious breach of its obligations as a member, in particular, the requirement to manage its affairs autonomously and to ensure that there is no government interference."

In the aftermath of a disappointing World Cup performance, Sri Lanka's Sports Ministry replaced the national cricket board with an interim committee. However, a court ruling overturned the move and reinstated the old board. 

Despite the Sri Lankan courts halting the move, the effective dismissal of the board and appointment of interim replacements by politicians in the country was apparently sufficient for the ICC to take action.

The conditions of the suspension will be decided by the ICC board in due course, it said in a statement. The board is set to meet on November 21. 

The SLC is the second ICC member to face suspension in the last four years, following a ban on Zimbabwe Cricket in 2019.

What does suspension from the ICC mean? 

While the suspension is in effect, Sri Lanka Cricket's funding from the ICC will be frozen. 

Its men's and women's teams will also be barred from taking part in ICC events, or in other words, any competitive international cricket matches.

Given Sri Lanka's difficult economic situation, barely a year on from a sovereign debt default, there could also be considerable impacts on the domestic game if the suspension endures. Poorer members tend to be more generally reliant on ICC funding for other cricketing expenses.

The country is scheduled to host the under-19 men's World Cup, starting in January, which could provide a motive to the ICC to rapidly resolve the issue.

Sri Lanka Cricket has in two separate statements rejected allegations of corruption from the government in Colombo, which are connected to preparations for hosting that tournament. The government accused the cricket body of transferring roughly $2 million from its accounts to third-party accounts.

rt, msh/nm (Reuters, AFP)